And Baby Makes Three
by bookworm812
Summary: updated so looks like this is going to go on a bit :not many more chapters just wanting to tie up some loose ends...thanks for all reviews, as always
1. Chapter 1

**Well, this is only a two chapter story – initially the idea was for it to be a simple Shawn/Angela story around a concept (which will be in chapter 2). Then I was watching episode 701 and 702 (thanks to seashellpoet wink) and my lack of patience with Cory and Topanga also kind of worked its way in here, making this a two-parter. I like C and T just as much as anyone else but I am completely honest when I say that there were many times I thought they were the most ridiculous couple of all – well suited for each other, but with not much to go on other than apparently being engaged since two freaking years old.**

Shawn Hunter smiled lazily, propping his chin up with one hand as he listened absently to the banter going back and forth between Cory and Topanga. As usual, they were arguing about something or the other with Topanga typically inching her way to victory and Cory just as typically gravitating towards sheepish acceptance.

'_The two deserve each other'_ he wryly mused even as he felt a stab of sympathetic amusement for his best friend who looked thoroughly brow-beaten and defeated. Topanga had sat back to sip at her cappuccino with a suitably satisfied grin on her face.

Cory sighed, looking over mutinously at Shawn, 'She does this to me all the time, buddy. All the time! It's a wonder I'm not completely bald yet.'

Shawn restrained himself manfully from giggling and was about to extend his empathetic commiseration when an indignant Topanga responded with, 'What do you mean by that, Cory? All I was suggesting was a dinner on Friday with some of my old colleagues from the firm and you immediately blew it out of proportion!'

Cory grimaced, 'Topanga, don't you think that…'

And they were off, in their own world again but this time Shawn was not amused. If anything, he detected a steely undercurrent of trouble and his breath escaped him in a rush as he realized that this was not the daily argument of a married couple that could be solved with a romantic dinner and love by candlelight.

Cory was actually looking miserable and Topanga, thoroughly frustrated. And both looked liked they would be anywhere but near each other at the moment.

Shawn suddenly became aware of the fact that couples at the nearby tables were staring at them. And in fact, had been for a while. He wished he could sink underneath the table and find a convenient crack of the earth to bury himself into.

He hated drawing attention to himself like this. And at that moment he was undeniably furious with Cory and Topanga for airing their grievances in such a public display.

'Guys', he leaned forward and gritted his teeth 'people are staring at us. Can you please keep it down?'

Topanga and Cory looked at him, as if just remembering that he was there and that they were in fact in public and attempted to sort themselves into a semblance of normalcy. Shawn wondered for the millionth time as to why they were so loud in everything they did. It seemed to be something going back to their school days – neither Cory nor Topanga had ever had any problem making themselves heard. Shawn on the other hand was a person of restraint and solitude. In particular, he abhorred the loss of his privacy and made it a point to always air personal issues only within the confines of his own personal space.

And he sighed in appreciation for having found a person of similar habit. Angela's poise and self control would not let her blow up or lose control in public and her dignity of bearing had been one of the first things that attracted Shawn to her. There was a certain tilt of elegance to her demeanor – in the way she walked, in the way she conversed and even in the physical aspects of their relationship. Over the years, Shawn's respect for her had only increased and her poise and rationality had rubbed itself on him. He was calmer now, less prone to loss of emotional control and his perspective was more clearer than ever.

This was more than could be said for the couple now sitting ridiculously upright in front of him. They straightened their clothes, brushed off imaginary specks of dirt and sat back to gaze at Shawn, with the most artificial expression of sweetness on their faces.

Shawn rolled his eyes, 'Ok, enough of this. What's wrong with you two?'

Cory immediately replied, an inscrutable expression on his face, 'Nothing's going on, ok? We just had a bad morning but its nothing that a good night out can't resolve…right, honey?'

He turned to Topanga and Shawn was shocked to see that the amiability on his friend's face was entirely fabricated. Topanga however shot her husband a distinctly frosty look and answered curtly, 'Shawn, when is Angela getting here?'

Shawn raised an eyebrow at such an abrupt turn in conversation but glanced at his watch. He couldn't help the smile that crept across his face as he thought about her and how glad he was that she was finally back today. Their time apart had yet again been hard on both of them, but luckily it had only been two weeks, and she had gone to Washington, after all. Close enough to New York to make him feel just a little better about it.

A little girl came up to their table, pigtails flying about wildly. 'Sorry' she panted, 'but my ball rolled under your table.' She smiled at Shawn and he grinned back, bending down.

'No problem, hang on a moment.'

Shawn spotted the article in question right away – it was a medium sized ball, colored a bright red. He brought it up and held it out to the girl. 'There you go.'

'Thanks, mister.' And the girl scampered away to her anxious mother whose relief on finally seeing her in the crowd was palpably visible.

'There, Topanga' Cory's frustrated voice broke into Shawn's quiet moment of peace as he had enjoyed the reunion between mother and child, 'What's wrong with a precious child like that? Do you think that wouldn't bring any joy to our marriage?'

Shawn took a large gulp of his latte in an attempt to prevent himself from exclaiming in utter surprise. Were children under serious discussion with his friends? And what had that last comment been about? Was anything wrong in their marriage?

Topanga simply sighed and rubbed her temples, 'Shawn, Angela's going to be here soon, right?'

Shawn gazed at her carefully and replied, 'Well, she messaged me a while back to say her flight had landed, so she should be here anytime now.'

Cory threw his hands up in the air, 'Why do you want to talk to Angela so much?! What about me? You're married to me, not her! It's our marriage that we need to discuss, Topanga!'

'Really? If you're admitting that we need to discuss our marriage Cory, then why don't you admit that we're also in need of counseling?' Topanga's tone was dismissive and laden with anger; Shawn winced as he saw Cory stiffen and swallow hard.

'Alright then, since you're so keen to talk to Angela, ask her how she does it then!'

At Topanga's questioning frown, Shawn closed his eyes. He could feel the back of his neck prickle and goosebumps rose on his arms. This was not going to be good. Suddenly, he knew that he didn't want to stick around. He didn't want to hear the words that were said next. Shawn had an uneasy premonition that he wasn't going to like what he heard, and that if Cory said something incredibly stupid as he was wont to say at times about him and Angela, he'd reach around the table and seriously consider pounding his best friend.

His original idea had been to meet Angela alone. It seemed laudably sensible now. Why on earth had he given in when Topanga had requested him to let them come? Come to think of it, she'd been a bit too insistent for the sake of pure friendship.

'Ask me what?'

Angela's inquiring tone made all the three look up and Shawn was thanking all the powers-that-be for her timely arrival. A rush of warmth flooded him as she came to stand beside his chair and he stood up to greet her.

'Hi' he grinned warmly. His fingers found hers and he brought their joined hands to his lips. Peering around her, he laughed, 'That all the luggage, you have?'

Angela rolled her eyes, 'Just because of that one time, when I went to Milan…'

Topanga had also stood up and she made her way around the table. 'Hi Angela' she whispered and opened her arms to hug her best friend. Angela returned the hug as tightly as she could with one arm, keeping her other linked with Shawn and he felt slightly resentful at Topanga. She was intruding on a reunion between him and his wife. He hadn't even kissed her hello yet!

Shawn's irritability was somewhat mellowed as he noticed the way Topanga was clinging on to his wife. She seemed unable to let go and he shook his head at Angela's inquiring and worried gaze. She looked at Cory next only to find him twirling a plastic spoon between his fingers with a mutinous expression on his face.

Angela pulled back to observe her friend and saw with a little alarm that Topanga was trying her best not to cry. She looked over at Shawn in silent resignation and he rolled his eyes, knowing what was going to happen. He struggled to rein in his temper, but he was thoroughly put off. Visions of a nice evening, alone with his wife, in their home after three grueling weeks of traveling crumbled to the ground, even as Angela kissed his hand again and mouthed 'I love you' with a loving smile.

He repeated the same to her softly, almost inaudibly and then she pulled away from Topanga and sat down. Topanga went back to her earlier seat, gripping her purse tightly and Angela turned to Cory who was still staring at the plastic spoons with the greatest fascination one could muster.

'Cory?' she ventured softly. 'Not going to say hi to me?'

Cory looked up at the warmth in her tone and sighed. Angela smiled openheartedly at him and Cory smirked dryly. He reached out and gave Angela a warm hug.

Shawn looked on and felt his love for Angela strengthen all over again. It was one of the things he admired a lot about her – she had a gift for empathy. No matter how ticked off someone was, or upset, Angela found a way to bring the cheer back on one's face and after talking to her, you didn't quite feel that things were that hopeless anymore.

She sat back down, next to him, and he rested a hand on her knee. Of their own accord and as usual, his fingers moved to gently, repeatedly stroke her kneecap. She leaned over and kissed him briefly – too briefly, he inwardly groaned – and then turned her attention to the couple sitting opposite, watching them uncomfortably.

'So' she began 'what's up, you guys? Why the look of World War III on your faces?'

'Because it_ is_ something like that, I think' supplied Shawn helpfully when neither Cory nor Topanga would say a word. 'They've been like this since they arrived here, they wanted to see you too.'

'Yes' interrupted Cory, a harsh and sarcastic sneer to his voice. 'Topanga was so eager to see _you_ and discuss our marriage with _you_ that she didn't even bother to think of talking to me – her husband first!'

Angela stared back in shock. Shawn clenched his fingers in a fist and growled, 'Stop it, Cory. Whatever it is, there's no reason to take it out on Angela. She's just arrived here, for God's sakes!'

Angela squeezed his arm reassuringly and sent Shawn a pleading look. He subsided but not without directing another steely glare at Cory who had the grace to look suitably chastised.

Topanga spoke up softly, 'I'm sorry, Angela. You've come back to a rather horrible welcome, and I guess we're responsible for that.' She took a deep breath and smiled at her best friend who had reached across to take her hand. 'I really need to talk to you. Any idea when we could meet up?'

Angela was about to respond when Cory interjected, 'Maybe we should both go. Shawn and Angela can talk to both of us and…'

'…we still need to see a counselor, Cory' finished Topanga firmly and rolled her eyes as her husband sat back and defensively crossed his arms.

Angela's face was neutral but inwardly she was bursting with questions. Marriage counseling for Cory and Topanga? She'd not seen that one coming before she left.

Her thoughts were drawn away from her espresso which Shawn had ordered once she'd arrived and she looked up to see Cory and Topanga arguing again. Shawn was simply resting a hand on his forehead, eyes closed but she registered the increased pressure of his fingers around hers.

Suddenly, she was irritable with the Matthews. She loved them a lot – they were all best friends, after all – but sometimes, she'd wondered why Cory and Topanga, for all their love had not gained the maturity that would naturally come with marriage. They argued childishly, far beyond the point of appearing adorable and still had tendency to air their linen in public. It was as if they hadn't made the complete transition from teenagers to full fledged adults with real lives. Cory insisted on the most ridiculous things, tended to still be insecure about the 'provider' in their marriage and attempted to emulate people rather than try to figure out their marriage for its own merit. Topanga was still as could be expected, she continued to be rather blunt and vocal in her expressions and although she had changed since her parents' divorce, Angela wished her best friend could have developed a little more developed in areas of marital sensitivity.

Quite astonishing, considering that she and Cory at least had parents to turn to for advice. Neither Angela nor Shawn had that luxury. They each had exactly one family member from either side – Angela had a father, Shawn had a brother. Their wedding had been quite funny too in that regard. There couldn't have been more than twenty people present. Angela had danced with Jack assuming the mantle of the groom's father after opening the dance with Shawn and she'd laughed until her sides ached at seeing Shawn resignedly dancing a few steps with her Dad.

'Angela?' Shawn was calling her name softly. She jolted a bit and then sent him a reassuring smile. His concern morphed into relief and he asked, 'Well? When can you meet with Topanga?'

'_Us! _And contrary to what Topanga says, we do not need counseling.' Cory protested instantly. He quelled under a withering look Shawn sent him. Topanga exclaimed loudly, 'Stop it Cory, you're nuts!' and Angela suddenly wanted nothing more than to slam her friends' heads together.

'Look guys, I do think some talking is in order, but it may not be possible today.' She paused to take a sip of her espresso again and noted the frown on Cory's face and the resignation on Topanga's. While Angela felt bad about pushing her friend's problems for the next day, she also resented the intrusion into her life, especially as she had just landed from a grueling assignment an hour or two back. After all, she and Shawn had never barged into the Matthews life.

She squeezed Topanga's hand and asked gently, 'Honey, would first thing tomorrow morning be alright with you? I have the entire morning free and we can do whatever you like.'

Topanga looked up and smiled back but Angela didn't miss the slight sheen in her eyes. She inhaled and replied, 'Sure, Ange that sounds great. Can we go to Battery Park then – I'll make brunch.'

Angela nodded in assent, pleased a see a little spark return. 'Let's make it a potluck – I'll bring something too. Hopefully there'll be no weirdoes around this time.'

They shared a laugh remembering the last time they had picnicked in Battery Park – a man with a python around his torso was drunkenly wandering around. He'd ambled near where they'd been sitting and Angela had nearly fainted on the spot on seeing a thick, sinewy, snake not three inches from her.

Topanga sighed but then decisively stood up. 'I'm glad you're back, Ange. I'll see you tomorrow then, yeah?'

Cory had stood up to. He turned to her 'So where are you going now?'

Topanga was quiet for a minute. 'I told you this morning, first thing when we awoke that I had to work this afternoon, Cory. You even agreed and said you'd try to get some work done as well.'

Cory held his hands up in mock-surrender. 'Fine, fine. I wouldn't dream of tearing you away from your job. Go ahead.'

He turned to Shawn, 'Sorry about earlier. We'll see you soon, right?'

Shawn nodded, not completely appeased. 'Yeah, guess so. You take care alright?' And you too Topanga.' He squeezed her hand and she smiled back in thanks.

Cory tipped a salute to Angela who saluted back in reply, 'See you soon, Hunter!' She lifted her espresso in acknowledgement, 'You take care too, Matthews!'

The couple walked away and as soon as they'd turned around the corner, Shawn wrapped an arm around Angela and pulled her close. He gazed down at her lips with need and was about to lean in when she pressed a hand against his mouth.

'Wait, why not we go home first, please? We can really be alone then.' Her eyes twinkled suggestively and he hugged her to him, cherishing the aroma of her skin and the light in her eyes.

He reached down to sling her bag over his shoulder leaving her to carry her handbag. Wrapping an arm around each other, they set off, weaving their way though the New York streets and towards their apartment.

Towards home.


	2. Chapter 2

'_Mmmmhmmm…_.'

Precisely three hours after she landed from Washington, Angela found herself lying in a delightfully boneless heap underneath her husband. A lazy smile curved her lips as she absently lifted a hand to caress his brown locks, half-damp with sweat and from the shower they'd recently shared.

'God, Shawn…we just had a shower…' she giggled ruefully, as she stroked his scalp.

Her breath hitched as Shawn burrowed his head further into her neck, murmuring in contentment. 'What's your point?' he questioned curtly, earning himself as strong a smack as Angela could manage on his back. He pressed his lips against her collarbone in retaliation and forced himself to lift his head long enough to smirk roguishly at her when she groaned at the feel of his tongue on her skin.

Propping himself on his elbows, he peered down at her. 'Well? I'm asking you again, what's your point? I didn't exactly hear you complain.'

Angela rolled her eyes and brought her hands up to cup his face, 'I'm certainly not complaining. Just that our shower seems rather pointless now…we could've come to bed straightaway, you know.' She gave him a naughty giggle and Shawn leaned down to kiss the corners of her mouth lovingly.

'It's your fault, after all' he pointed out reasonably, settling himself atop his wife more comfortably and allowing her to wrap her arms around his shoulders. As she stared at him questioningly, he continued, 'If you hadn't insisted on wanting to wash up, then we could've been here that much sooner.'

Angela tapped the side of his nose smartly, 'I'll have you know that I just jumped into the plane straight from the interview. Blech!' she shuddered. 'I couldn't just get into bed and do this…' she waved a hand between them, '…without feeling at least halfway civilized!'

'There's nothing civilized about you, baby' said Shawn grinning and he watched in satisfaction as Angela blushed a deep red and unsuccessfully attempted an outraged response. He interrupted her stammer by claiming her lips in a deep and hungry kiss that left her seeing stars.

Angela gasped as her head fell back on their pillows, 'Honey, you've got to stop doing that…'

Her husband laughed but as he framed her face between his hands, his expression became serious. 'I've missed you, love. It's great to have you back…the bed's been awfully cold without you.'

Angela's eyes filled with tears and she gave him a half-hearted shove. 'Why do you always say things that make me cry like this?'

Shawn chuckled. 'And you thought I was the sappy type.' He brought his lips to her cheeks and sipped gently at the trails of tears slowly coursing down. He groaned as his wife's hands softly moved over his neck, his back. 'Oh, I've missed that so much…'

Angela reached up to place a few kisses against his shoulder and gently ran her fingers over his forearms. 'I've missed you, too. So very much…'

Shawn hugged her to him tightly and made to roll off her but she prevented him from doing so. The pads of his thumbs moved over her cheek. 'Honey, I must be getting heavy for you.'

Angela smiled warmly at his concern and shook her head. 'Its ok, I love it when I can hold you like this – I feel like nothing can ever touch me and that I'm the most beautiful woman in the world.'

'You _are_ the most beautiful woman in the world to me, ok?' Shawn's tone was serious and his voice choked. 'And you make me feel mighty special, too.'

They lay there, foreheads touching, holding one another for a few more minutes. After a while when Shawn felt that he could be sufficiently coordinated enough, he rolled off, pulling Angela with him so that she rested her head on his chest, snuggled closely at his side.

She placed a hand on his heart and leaned up to look at him, 'I've wanted to talk to you about something.'

Shawn moved to sit up a little against the headboard and Angela accordingly adjusted herself. Wrapping the blankets a little more snugly, he encouraged, 'What about?'

Angela sat up and Shawn felt his fingers twitch as she gracefully leaned over and took her robe off the bedpost. Putting it on, she got out of bed and went over to their bathroom. Shawn waited while she freshened up. She sat down next to him and took his hand in hers. 'Can we talk over a cup of coffee?'

Shawn's curiosity was heavily piqued. He restrained himself from pelting his wife with questions; her thumbs were twiddling against one another and she bounced her leg restlessly. Best to let her get this out her own way.

'Sure, baby.' Giving her a sweet kiss, he too grabbed his robe. While he was in the bathroom, Angela went into their kitchen and stood by the coffee-maker as she wrestled with how to approach the one issue that had dominated her mind for a while now. Placing the cups on their dining table, she willed herself to be calm and took a few deep breaths.

'So?' Shawn was now sitting in front of her, his own cup between his hands. His expression was warm and soothing, and his eyes twinkled lovingly. 'Alright, what's going on?'

Angela clasped her hands, noting in some amusement despite the situation that her knuckles were actually turning white. She brought her eyes up to meet those of her husband and spoke quietly, 'We've been married now for nearly four years, Shawn. And I just…well, I was thinking…I mean, I know it might be too soon, but I wanted to think…it seems to be the right time…'

'Hey!' interrupted Shawn, a smile on his face. He caught her hands in his and ran his thumbs over her knuckles. 'Honey, you're rambling' he reproached softly. 'Which means you're nervous. You know you can tell me anything, right? Come on then, out with it.'

Angela sighed as Shawn nodded at her encouragingly again and closed her eyes. 'I was wondering what you thought about having a family.'

The only sounds to be heard in their kitchen were the bubble and hiss of the coffee percolator and an erratic tap of water hitting the sink. Angela chanced a look at Shawn and found him gazing blankly at the tabletop. Quelling her feelings of despair, she pulled her hands away and went to place her cup in the sink. 'It's ok, Shawn. We don't have to right away…it was just a thought.'

Shawn found his voice after a few more minutes. 'How…how long have you been thinking about this?'

Angela leaned against the kitchen counter, keeping her gaze on the floor, 'I…I don't know! I mean, I can't pinpoint the exact moment but this time on my trip, Shawn, I just…I just felt so tired, so frustrated with all the traveling and just not being home for a proper life! And then…' she continued with a faraway look in her eyes, 'the most amazing thing happened this time. I watched over a baby for a mother when she had to use the washroom on the plane and oh…' she trailed off, unaware of the two tears that had leaked out, '…it was just such an incredible feeling Shawn. I felt complete, like I had found what was missing. I held her for nearly 10 minutes, and…and, I just didn't feel like giving her back' her voice trailed off in a tearful whisper.

Shawn said nothing for a while, even as his mind was going over everything his wife had just uttered. He drew his chair back and held out his arms. Angela hesitated, then walked over and perched herself on his lap, looking at him uncertainly.

'You're not mad, I hope?' Her voice was vulnerable and timid, and Shawn hated the fact that he may have done anything to make it that way. And another uncomfortable thought pricked at his mind – 'Honey, were you actually scared of my reaction?'

Angela sighed but decided to be honest. In a heavy voice, she replied, 'Honestly, yes. Very much.'

Shawn stared at her, stunned, a little hurt and angry. 'During all our time together before and after marriage, have I actually scared you? Made you feel afraid of me?'

Angela looked up at him and stroked his cheek. She leaned down to place a loving kiss on it and then thoughtfully said, 'It wasn't that I was scared that you'd physically hurt me, Shawn. But your actions at some points did make me wonder about how well you'd react to things…'

Shawn blew out a resigned breath even as he hugged her tighter and gave her hip an affectionate squeeze. 'Like the drinking, you mean.'

Angela nodded in agreement, carefully keeping her voice neutral and non-accusatory. 'You have spun out of control whenever you've dealt with issues before, honey.'

Shawn sighed. 'Angela, I promised you remember? Not just after that incident with that letter and the adoption and what not, didn't I promise you even on our wedding day as well as our wedding night that I'd always be there, I'd never run away?' His tone was of gentle reproach but mingled with a level of resignation that tore at Angela heart – it was deemed certain that every time something went wrong in Shawn Hunter's life, the people who loved him were bound to suffer due to his inability to think of the consequences of his actions.

She hastened to reassure him of her faith in him. 'I remember your promise very well, dear and I have complete trust in you, ok? I was just a bit scared and apprehensive, that's all…but I've never doubted us or your faith in us, ok?'

Shawn tilted his face up for a kiss and Angela smilingly obliged. He pulled her closer and she registered the shaking of his hands as they clutched at her. 'Oh Shawn…' she pulled away sorrowfully and saw him squeezing his eyes tightly shut. 'Honey, please don't cry…I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that…'

Her husband shook his head in protest. He opened his mouth to speak, had to stop and clear his throat and try again. 'No, you're…you're right, Angela. I haven't been all that rational before every time to make you believe that I'd approach this topic the right way, but you do know that I've stopped doing that, right? Please say that you believe me, I…I've never wanted to be the one causing you any pain, ever.' He choked on a suppressed sob and Angela's heart went out to him.

Kissing his forehead lightly, she made him focus on her. 'I believe you 100, Shawn Hunter. Alright? Don't for a minute think that I think any the less of you for being human. Yes, there are always better ways to deal with issues that have and will come in our lives but we know what to do now, don't we?' She gave him a teary wink and was pleased to see a watery grin in return.

Shawn arranged her more comfortably in his lap and brought up a hand to play with her hair. 'I can't say that I haven't wondered what it would be like to have a child.'

Angela stared in astonishment as Shawn playfully chucked her chin. 'Oh come on, I honestly have!' As Angela sighed and ran a hand through her hair, Shawn thoughtfully mused, 'I suppose we are in a position to have one now, so that's not a problem as well…'

'Exactly!' Angela triumphantly exclaimed and got up to walk around the kitchen excitedly while her husband looked on in mingled affection and amusement. 'That's just it, we've had good jobs that have paid well for a while now, Shawn. I'd like to be home for a bit, you know maybe take up something that won't require traveling at least!'

'Honey' Shawn pointed out gently, 'you love your job – we both do. If you quit writing, have your thought about what you want to do instead?'

Angela fiddled with the belt on her robe and then straightened her back. 'I wouldn't mind trying my hand at teaching English or teaching creative writing…and besides, I did do a double major in psychology so maybe something in counseling might be right up my alley too.'

Shawn chewed on his lower lip slowly. It would seem that his wife's mind had certainly been quite active on the trip home. His breath escaped him in a rush as he suddenly realized that if they went ahead with this now, within a year there would be the patter of little feet around the house…his heart grew full with emotion envisioning a little bundle that was him and Angela put together, a morsel of humanity that would be utterly dependent on them to raise it, love it and lavish it with all the unconditional affection that its parents had been denied.

He didn't even realize that tears were streaming down his face until he felt Angela's hands slowly wiping his cheeks. Seeing her gaze laden with worry and concern, he smiled dismissively. 'Just thinking, that's all – you know, darling, this baby is going to get everything that we missed out on.'

Angela's voice broke as she tried to talk. 'Most of all, a…a mother'

Shawn held her as she cried. It wasn't often that either of them shed tears for missing parents – it had been so long ago and had happened at a young age to both of them. Their hearts had hardened with time and while Shawn wondered occasionally about his father and mother and Angela mused on where her mother could be, both were supremely content with each other and drew on the other for strength, support and companionship.

But occasions like this would always be hard. The couple knew in the back of their minds that parents would never be a prominent force in their lives. Angela's heart yearned for what was denied to her: her mother fussing over her wedding, giving her marital advice, being there for baby queries, helping her through labor and babysitting her grandkids.

Shawn murmured soothing words of comfort in her ear and Angela slowly eased away, eyes still red rimmed.

'We don't have any mommies' she said, her words exactly the same as those uttered by Shawn's over his desperation at not being able to find his birth mother. 'Oh God, Shawn…what if I am a bad mother?'

Shawn pulled her to him and shook her slightly. His eyes bored into hers. 'Never say that, Angela. You are not our mothers ok? We got married in spite of whatever skeletons were always hanging in our closets and we've made it work. And we _will_ continue to make this work, ok?'

Angela kissed him fervently, and Shawn grinned. 'What was that for?'

'For being you' she whispered. Rubbing her thumb along his lower lip, she let her eyes roam his face. 'I love you so much…don't ever change, ok?'

Shawn wrapped his arms around her waist and moved to kiss the delightful curve where her neck and shoulder met. 'And I love you too, honey. You mean everything in the world to me.' Meeting her eyes, he said seriously, 'I'm never going to leave. You understand that?'

Angela simply nodded her head. Shawn blew out a breath and then suddenly smirked, waggling his eyebrows. 'So should we get started on our newest project?'

She blushed and looked away but Shawn's heart soared. Leaning down, he wrapped an arm around her knees and swept her up into his arms. Holding her closely, he made his way back upstairs, feeling the comforting touch of Angela's arms around his neck and her lips nudging at his cheek.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Finally! This chapter is a bit long but I'm hoping that the muse will strike again real soon! **

Shawn sighed wearily as he fumbled with the keys in his hand. Today had been a long day; while he loved his job and was glad that he could combine his love of writing with photography, working for a magazine like Rolling Stone meant long hours at work and grappling with people that spanned the gamut of human personalities.

A smile crept across his tired face as he imagined his wife's arms around him and her delightfully comforting aroma – it was the perfect antidote to any depression that he suffered at work.

As the keys finally gave way and allowed the doorjamb to unlock, Shawn let himself in and made sure that he wiped his feet carefully. Angela was a stickler for neatness and while Shawn prided himself on not being as much of a slob as he might have been in the days when he shared a place with Jack and Eric, there were some things that he had to be constantly reminded of – wiping his muddy shoes thoroughly on the doormat and not bringing wet garments dripping into the house, were just two of them.

The flames of their fireplace sent a cheery glow around their living room and instantly Shawn knew that Angela would probably be curled up on the couch with a book of poetry in her hand. He walked in, already feeling the weariness ebb and his face lit up at the warm grin on her face at seeing him.

'Hey, you' she said, lifting her face for a hello kiss which Shawn immediately responded wholeheartedly to. After ensuring that they did indeed exchange very thorough hellos, he dumped his bag on their coffee table and winked at Angela, 'Scoot over, my feet are cold too.'

She winked at him slyly, 'If you get in on the other end, you can make my cold feet warm with a nice rub. And yours will be warm too – they'll be under the blanket anyway.'

Shawn smirked, 'Nice try. But I'm getting in on this end. More interested in your face than your feet tonight.'

She pouted, but Shawn caught the twinkle in her eyes, 'But you like my feet, honey.'

Shawn nodded sagely. 'Oh I do, I do, believe you me. I love all your ten toes, bunions and all.'

'Shawn!' she exclaimed, exasperated and Shawn chuckled as he wormed his way in beside her on their couch. Angela was still a tad sensitive about her feet, and had tried everything she knew to ease the bunions that somehow still formed in spite of her best efforts. Shawn himself was never bothered; he liked the fact that she had a human flaw albeit on her feet – he couldn't count the number of times he'd been crazy with jealousy on the way innumerable men would admiringly gaze at his fiancée and wife, despite the engagement and wedding rings on her finger.

He gave her a loving grin as she continued to stare balefully at him. Leaning forward, he reached up to kiss her forehead, made his way down to the tip of her nose and then placed kisses on her eyelids and cheeks. Cupping her cheek in his right hand, he stared into her eyes and whispered, 'Forgiven?'

She rolled her eyes but said teasingly, 'For now, I suppose that will have to do.'

Shawn poked her in the side and delighted in her infectious giggle. 'The things I do for you…' he dramatically sighed and closed his eyes, resting his head comfortably on the veritable bed of cushions that covered their couch.

Soft, beloved fingers stroked his forehead and he moaned thankfully, 'Oooh, that feels wonderful, honey. Don't stop for the next half-an hour or so, ok?'

Angela pulled his nose smartly and registered his cry of protest in satisfaction. 'Serves you right' she scolded. 'Half-an-hour?'

Shawn gave her the puppy dog look, complete with pleading eyes, jutting lower lip and drawn face. Angela waggled a finger at him, 'Don't you dare, Shawn Hunter. I'm not falling for that, and while those eyes may have made me give in to some crazy things, I'm well and truly immune to their total effect now.'

'But, I've had such a bad day' he pleaded and caught her hand, bringing the knuckles to his lips and slowly yet steadily lavishing kisses on them. Angela scoffed but the little shiver that skimmed her shoulders told Shawn that she had given in and inwardly he crowed in smug satisfaction.

'Why, honey? Did something happen?' Angela resumed stroking his forehead and hair, occasionally stopping to press a small kiss against it when he burrowed closer.

Shawn's reply was drowsy and Angela suppressed a spate of chuckles at how incoherent he sounded. 'Hmm…not sure…the usual…you know how it is…boss from hell…mmm, that's great honey, I'm sure that I married you just for those hands…ow!'

Angela had flicked his forehead at the last comment and Shawn focused his bleary gaze to see her looking questioningly at him. 'What? That was meant as a compliment!'

She shook her head but resumed her earlier task, 'You're home early, too. Boss from hell away?'

Shawn laughed. 'No, he's there alright but I have the next two days off, actually. He was so pleased with my last assignment that he offered me a two day holiday bonus which I decided to take now, seeing as we've got our latest project to be working on.' He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively and got a mouthful of pillow in reply as Angela whacked him with two cushions soundly.

'Well, I'm glad to see such a high level of interest in it.'

Shawn tucked an arm around her and pulled her to him. Placing his lips against her cheek, he inhaled deeply and then sighed, feeling halfway normal again and forgetting that a chaotic world and stormy weather existed outside their little nest. Angela kissed him softly in return and then pulled back, concerned. 'You look more tired today than usual – are you sure that everything's ok at work?'

'Yeah, no sweat' he waved a hand dismissively. Looking up at her, he asked, 'And what about you? What did Meryl-the-Devil say?'

Angela shrugged her shoulders. 'Not much, as usual. Its like pulling water from a stone to get a compliment from her…' she trailed off and then hesitatingly continued, 'Shawn, I want to tell her tomorrow.'

'About what?' he questioned.

'Quitting…I have to give in a month's notice anyway, but before she saddles me with something else, I'd really like to let her know.'

Shawn rubbed a hand thoughtfully over his face. 'Honestly, I'm surprised you didn't tell her today.'

His wife poked him but her eyes were soft and shining. 'And not discuss it with you first? Haven't we told each other this stuff first and then taken a joint decision up until now?'

Shawn smiled warmly and kissed her forehead. 'That we have, love, that we have…'

'Except for back in college when you decided to….'

'Yes, yes, yes' interrupted Shawn hastily. 'I remember all too well and I know that I'll never be hearing the end of it for the rest of our lives.' He reached up and brushed some stray curls that had escaped her impromptu bun and tucked them gently behind her ears. 'And I'll never stop kicking myself too. I knew even back then that I was the world's biggest idiot so there's no danger of me doing that again.'

Angela laughed and hugged him. Shawn laced his fingers with hers and asked. 'So how was your morning with Topanga?'

His wife was quiet for a long while before she finally answered. 'Very illuminating, to say the least. There's a lot of trouble brewing there.'

Shawn looked at her, surprised. 'Really? As in real trouble? Not just a marital spat?'

Angela nodded. 'They're in a difficult place right now, and a large part of it stems from the fact that they're just so different in terms of what they want from life…and oh, by the way, please do not tell Cory that we're trying for a baby, ok? No matter what.'

Shawn goggled. 'Why not? I'm guessing Topanga knows anyway!'

'Because Cory wants them to start trying for a child too, and…'

'…and Topanga doesn't want one yet, right?' finished Shawn with a rueful sigh. He didn't want to keep something of this nature from his best friend but he could well see Angela's point. It would only take Cory knowing that his best friends were having a family to constantly badger his own wife about the same thing.

'I never thought Topanga had held in so much, though' Angela mused, and Shawn brought his thoughts back to what she was saying. 'What do you mean?'

She threw up her hands and Shawn could feel the regret in her voice. 'Now, she believes they should have waited a bit before getting married…'

'What?!?' broke in Shawn. He stared at her and she rolled her eyes. 'She actually told you that?'

'She's given up a lot to be with Cory, you know' pointed out Angela.

'But…but…' stammered her husband. 'She was the one who asked him to marry her! And at high school graduation, no less!'

'Yes, yes I know all that' Angela rubbed her temples. 'But it's coming to a head now…I mean, she gave up Yale for Heaven's sake! And she didn't stay with her parents in Pittsburgh either – she stayed back in Philly…and she's just not ready for a child, Shawn…there's so much more that she wants to do but she feels she can't because they married too young…'

Shawn blew out a breath. 'Well, they needn't have a child rightaway…wait a minute, she knows about us, right?'

Angela nodded. 'Yeah, I told her and she sends congratulations to you too. But no way is she ready for a kid yet and neither is Cory – they need to work out these issues first before any thoughts of family expansion. And it doesn't help that Cory doesn't want any marriage counseling – he prefers talking to his parents instead or comparing their marriage to ours and neither of those options is going to help!'

Shawn rubbed her back soothingly, 'What do you mean?'

Angela replied frustrated, 'They're not the same. You can't compare marriages Shawn; it doesn't work that way! Cory just doesn't get that we're different and that his parents are different too! He thinks that because his parents had Eric at a very young age and then three more kids, once he and Topanga get started on a family, things will automatically resolve themselves!'

Shawn sighed, 'I never thought I'd be the one to say this but perhaps Cory and Topanga were too focused on what the ideal thing to do would be rather than reality.'

Angela raised her eyebrows 'Meaning?'

'Well, I guess since they were always together, it seemed like they were destined for each other, you know? And I honestly thought that was something unique but I guess at that age, a marriage brings in a whole new set of issues that maybe they weren't ready to face yet.'

'And I never thought I'd feel so bad about being right, but you remember when they first thought of eloping?' Shawn nodded and Angela ruefully continued, ' I told Topanga then to wait and not rush into it – I told her that she could stay engaged and have fun; it just seems so much more sensible to finish college and then get married; today, when she told me that she remembered what I'd said and that she wished she'd listened, I felt horrible; I never wished for this to happen!'

Shawn cuddled her closer. 'Hey, its ok, you were actually a better friend to her than I was to Cory at the time – I was the fool; I urged him to get on with it but you did the right thing. And we did the right thing too - we may have gotten engaged in college but we waited until we both had jobs…'

Angela agreed. 'That's what Topanga was saying to me today. I honestly don't know what they're going to do but I credit her for wanting to go to counseling and solve their issues – I just wish Cory was a little more understanding; he's still like a child about so many things.'

'Hey! Maybe he was at one point, but don't you think he began to change once he and Topanga were engaged?'

Angela ticked off items on her fingers as she recounted them. 'Let's take their wedding night then, shall we? This is what I heard straight from a distraught bride's mouth – her husband clumsily threw her on the bed, fumbled anxiously with his clothes, didn't want to slow, didn't see the need for foreplay, became dramatic when his wife wanted to change, screamed like an excited banshee when she did appear, then threw himself on top, checked under the covers again to make sure that the honeymoon was really happening and when they finally went to Hawaii, made his wife carry him!!'

She stopped to take a few deep breaths and Shawn stared at her, dumbfounded. 'Cory did _what?_'

'Shawn' she said quietly. 'How do you think I would feel if you behaved like that on our wedding night?'

He rolled his eyes. 'First off, I wouldn't behave like that to begin with, and secondly, I wanted a night of romance for us, not just me alone.'

'That's it!' exclaimed Angela exasperatedly. 'Cory might be sweet and what not but he doesn't have a romantic bone in his body – his brand of romance is unique alright but isn't it about time that he stops goofing off over everything?'

She stopped again to take another breath and then slowly leaned over Shawn, pushing her husband back into the cushions. 'And for the record' she breathed 'I quite enjoyed our wedding night…you were absolutely incredible and I loved what you did to our little home.'

Shawn's eyes glinted as he fervently kissed his wife. Pulling back, he stroked her cheek softly, 'Given that our wedding night was at home itself, I wanted to make it as wonderful as possible; my intention was to give you the night of your dreams.'

'That you did baby, that you most certainly did.' Angela pressed her lips lovingly against the corner of his mouth and fingered his goatee gently. 'What you did to our room…I thought I'd stepped into another world that night.'

Shawn's eyes lowered in regret, 'I'm sorry that it was just a one bedroom apartment but it was all that I could offer you at the time and…'

'Hush' she remonstrated warmly. 'That may have been just a one bedroom apartment but it was the first place that we got together Shawn…it was _our_ place. And spending our wedding night together in a such a place where you worked so hard to make it perfect for us meant more to me than any expensive or lavish honeymoon you could have taken me on.'

'I wanted to take you to someplace like Hawaii though…you know, some place that was like paradise' he replied quietly, clutching her fingers tightly and looking at her with heavy regret.

She put both her hands on the sides of his face and stroked his cheeks, 'You did take me to Barbados the next year for our first anniversary, remember? And have I told you how proud I was when you told my father that you wanted to make our wedding night and honeymoon special with your own efforts?'

Shawn blinked to clear the tears in his eyes and the lump in his throat. 'It just didn't feel right, Angela. I know that he and Jack pooled in and wanted to give us a week in Vermont as a wedding gift but I wanted to be the one to make our first time special. And since I didn't have the means to take my wife anywhere at the time, I was hoping that you wouldn't be too mad at me.'

She smiled sweetly. 'On the contrary, honey, I respected you all the more. I loved you for all the effort you put in and we did go to Vermont the next day, so we were able to accept their present as well.'

'I love you' he whispered and placing a hand on his wife's neck brought her face to his. So engrossed were they in themselves that Angela's cell lying on the coffee table went unheeded for a long while until she caught the backlight flashing out of the corner of her eye. Reaching over and inspecting it, she turned to Shawn. 'Its from Topanga; she says that she's going to talk to Cory tonight and she'll let me know tomorrow.'

'Mmmhmm' answered Shawn, again resting his head comfortably on the cushions. 'Something smells good by the way.'

'Don't get your hopes up – I ordered Chinese because I was just too pooped to really try and make anything.'

'Suits me fine' he answered and laughing, got up yanking Angela along with him.


	4. Chapter 4

Shawn leaned casually against the mantelpiece above the fireplace at Alan and Amy Matthew's home as he sipped slowly at the glass of white wine in his hands, and surveyed the scene.

Eric was chatting with his parents by the door; apparently it was a most interesting discussion – Shawn hadn't seen Eric look so animated about anything in a while. Almost automatically, his eyes cut across to the stairs where his brother, Jack and Rachel seemed to be conversing quietly but deeply.

Shawn took another sip of his wine even as he willed himself not to look surprised. Something was brewing with Jack and Rachel, but exactly what was completely unclear to all their friends. The two had served in the Peace Corps for a year together, and had returned in time for the graduation of the younger quartet in their group. Although Eric hadn't gone into the Peace Corps with them, he had managed to fulfill his dream of being a weatherman after all – the position done so long ago as part of an internship was now his regular job, and he was settled in Philadelphia.

Shawn smiled to himself, happy that Eric was finally doing well in life. Underneath his happy-go-lucky façade was a heart of gold that wanted nothing more than the best for the most important people in its little world. However, Shawn didn't miss the way Eric's eyes would sometimes take on a faraway quality as they looked through the windows into the house that gazed back at him from the other side of the fence.

Mr Feeny's illness had hit all of them hard, but Eric had taken it the hardest – he'd been utterly devastated. The elder gentleman had been such a profound influence in his life, and Shawn was thankful that Eric had had Jack to lift himself out of the stupor he'd fallen into. Deep down, Shawn knew that his brother and Rachel had rushed back immediately on hearing of Mr Feeny's illness and not because they'd wanted to move on from the Peace Corps, as they'd originally claimed. They'd known that Eric would be helpless and it was only upon seeing them that Eric had smiled for the first time in days. His family, Shawn and Angela and worried about him, seeing the depression he was slipping into and it had been Jack and Rachel who'd single-handedly brought him out of it.

Shawn's smile slowly morphed into a grimace as his eyes continued to sweep the room and landed on the couple in its far corner, next to the writing desk. He groaned inwardly and restrained the urge to throw his wine glass at his best friend's head. Surely he and his wife could stop arguing just for a few hours, while they visited their folks' home? The harsh sneers and ugly eye rolls on Cory and Topanga's faces quite clearly conveyed their feelings about each other and Shawn sighed as he watched Topanga shoot her husband another angry glare and then stomp off towards the kitchen. Cory threw his hands up dismissively and made his own way upstairs, only giving a cursory nod to Jack and Rachel who looked wonderingly after him as he passed them.

Shawn frowned as sounds of light laughter drifted to his ears from his left. He couldn't help smiling however as his eyes landed on his own wife. The smile immediately dropped off as he noticed the man conversing with her – _him_.

For Shawn, Ron Williams would forever be known as _him_. He'd been utterly gob smacked when Ron had been introduced as Mr. Feeny's caretaker – apparently, he'd gone into nursing and was now attached to two of the most prestigious hospitals in the state of Pennsylvania. What Shawn was actually fuming over was the way Ron's eyes had lit up on seeing Angela – _his wife, damn it_! – and then how he'd walked over to her without preamble and tightly hugged her. It had only been Jack's hands on his shoulders that had kept him from hauling himself tooth and nail at Ron.

Given that Ron came over to see Mr Feeny on an almost daily basis, he'd become quite friendly with the Matthews and they'd invited him to their get-togethers. And so, Shawn had been quite distressed when he'd arrived with Angela to suddenly find an ex-boyfriend of his wife's amidst the reception committee. And it seemed like Ron hadn't ever forgotten that one date where Shawn had devoutly wanted nothing more than to hold Angela tightly to him but was instead forced to see her talking, smiling and even singing with another guy.

Even now, she was laughing softly at something he was saying and then she questioned him in response. Shawn's eyes narrowed and his fingers clutched the hapless glass in his hands tightly as he saw Ron grasp his wife's elbow earnestly. However Angela seemed unperturbed, and she shook her head amusedly as she sipped delicately at the lemonade she was holding. Then, Ron threw his head back, let out a boisterous laugh over some joke and his hand came down to squeeze Angela's shoulder briefly.

Shawn snapped. He saw red and his eyebrows narrowed even as he raged at how this man was even daring to touch his wife. Without stopping to think, in two strides he was standing next to Angela, smiling as pleasantly as he could manage.

'Hi, baby' he addressed Angela and glanced over at Ron, noting with some satisfaction at the nonplussed and somewhat sour look he was receiving. 'Ron' he continued, grinning brightly, 'How are you, man? It's been a long time, hasn't it?'

Ron gazed back at him with a steely look, over the rim of his glass. 'Yes, it's been a while, Shawn. So you finally managed to get Angela to take you back, hmm? You're one lucky guy – Angela, you must really love him a lot!' He laughed warmly enough but Shawn didn't miss the hidden barb in his words, and it stung. It stung like mad that Ron was deliberately putting him down in front of his wife.

He struggled to keep his expression neutral though and instead wrapped an arm firmly around Angela's waist, drawing her closer, protectively to him. He was about to retort when she interrupted smoothly, 'Yeah well, I do love him a lot and the happiest day of my life so far was when we got married.' She smiled lovingly at Shawn and made to gently pull away but he kept his arm around her and leaned down to kiss her deeply and lingeringly.

'I love you, too' he whispered and caught the look of disgust on Ron's face out of the corner of his eye. 'Mind if I steal you away for some time?' he continued, pretending to be totally oblivious. 'Need to talk to you for a bit.'

Angela raised an eyebrow and Shawn willed himself not to blush. She was looking at him, scrutinizing him, and he knew instantly that she saw right through him and his little ploy. He put on his best innocent face, however and straightened up further. She sized him up some more and then turned to Ron. 'So, it was nice meeting you again, Ron.'

Ron held up his glass in a mock salute. 'Always a pleasure meeting you, Angela. You're as lovely as the day we first met.' Shawn gritted his teeth at the nauseatingly warm tone of the man's words but his wife's response was simply friendly and neutral. 'Oh, thanks.' Turning to Shawn, she gestured. 'Let's go, honey.'

Shawn simply nodded a goodbye and wasted no time in hustling Angela through the kitchen and out to the Matthews' backyard. He put his glass down on the patio table and gripped the fence, breathing hard in an effort to quell the feelings that were overwhelming him. He was all too aware of the complete silence that enclosed the backyard and didn't look up until he felt Angela's hands warmly covering one of his own.

'Shawn?' she asked gently. 'You want to tell me what all that was about?'

Shawn opened his eyes and exhaled, but decided to act nonchalant. 'What do you mean?'

Angela folded her arms across her chest and fixed him with one of her patented don't-toy-with-me looks. 'You didn't really have anything all that urgent to talk about, did you?'

Shawn stammered out a response, feeling a hot sensation cover the back of his neck. 'I…I did, I hadn't seen you for a while, and I wondered how you were feeling…because its been a while, and you didn't want to see a doctor, and I just…I just…oh hell! Why do I even bother?'

He missed the grin on his wife's face as she leant towards him and cupped a cheek affectionately. 'Yes, I would ask you the same question…you know I'm going to ferret it out eventually, so come clean, what's all this really about, Shawn?'

He straightened stoically. 'Absolutely no ulterior motive.'

Angela sidled closer and wrapped both her arms around his shoulders, and lazily drawled, 'This wouldn't have anything to do with me talking to a certain dreamy man by the name of Ron Williams, would it?'

She bit her lip to keep from laughing as Shawn looked suitably appalled. 'Dreamy?!' he nearly shrieked. 'Angela, you can't tell me that you actually find that…that vermin attractive!'

Angela grinned naughtily. 'Oh come on, I am married but I'm not dead. Ron isn't hard on the eyes at all, you know.'

Shawn crossly moved away and turned his back to her. 'No, I don't know, thank you very much. And I wouldn't want to, either. You just go right back in there and continue whatever it is you were so happily talking about.'

Angela sighed, rolling her eyes at his grumpy demeanor but she was smiling as she grasped his shoulder and firmly turned him around to face her. 'On the other hand,' she seductively whispered, 'there is this man who I find unbearably, incredibly, indefinably handsome and whom I also happen to be married to.' She hugged him closer and placed a small kiss on his chin. 'I'd choose him over Ron any day.'

Shawn still had a scowl on his face but his eyes had softened and his own arms had automatically wrapped around his wife's waist. 'He was trying to flirt with you. I mean, where does he get off, touching you like that…we're married for God's sakes!'

'Honey' soothed Angela patiently. 'If he'd touched me in any way that I didn't want him to, you know that I would have made sure he'd seen that. We were just talking...'

'Yeah, well' grumbled her husband. 'Its obvious to all but the totally blind that he wants to do a lot more than just talking.'

'It doesn't matter' remonstrated Angela, still maintaining her patience and calm. 'He may fancy himself in lust or like or love with me, but I love you, Shawn. _You_. Ok? There's no other man for me.'

Shawn pulled her closer and breathed in her scent. 'There's no one else for me, either, love. And it's not that I don't trust you or anything…'

'I know' she interjected laughingly. 'And by the way, have I told you how cute you are when you get jealous?'

Shawn snorted. 'I wasn't jealous. I was merely…concerned.'

'Yeah, right' scoffed his wife most decidedly. 'You were practically marking your territory!'

Shawn sighed resignedly, knowing that he was well and truly busted. 'But you forgive me, right?' he questioned in a small voice that he knew his wife found exceedingly hard to resist. 'I just…I hate the thought of some other guy even looking at you in the wrong way, and I just want to poke their eyes out when they start to stare at you…cant help it, sorry.'

Angela ran a hand through his hair in a loving caress. 'Thank you for looking out for me. And yes, you are forgiven.'

Shawn smirked as he kissed her cheeks and then nudged her lips with hers. 'Good, because I for one, am in lust and like and love with you.'

The couple's romantic embrace was abruptly ended as angry footsteps echoed in the backyard as a fuming Rachel McGuire flung the screen door open and charged towards the fence. Shawn and Angela simply stared as she paced, muttering angrily to herself all the while.

'Rachel?' Angela tentatively ventured after a few minutes. 'What's going on?'

Rachel stopped short and fixed the couple with a steely stare. She advanced over to Shawn who nearly cowered back in fear. 'Can you tell me' she began in a deceptively calm voice, 'why all you Hunters are pathetic at coming to the simplest of decisions?'

Shawn's eyes widened and he turned to Angela with a plea for rescue written on his face. Angela reached out and slowly grasped her former roommate's arm gently. 'Rachel, what are you talking about?'

The redhead threw her hands up in the air, 'I've had it! I've just about had it with Jack Hunter! I can't believe all the nonsense he's feeding me about being commitment shy and not ready for a long term relationship and all other sorts of crap!' She finished with a hoarse yell and willed herself to calm down, gripping the fence as Shawn had done only a while back.

Angela sighed knowingly. 'Look, Shawn said the same thing to me…'

Rachel's eyes snapped to Shawn who was looking at the ground with a very guilty expression etched on his face. 'So it is a trademark of all Hunters, then' she remarked wryly.

'Rachel, there you are' came the voice of Jack Hunter as he spotted her and made a straight beeline for the redhead who was watching him warily. 'Look, don't take this wrong, I really do care about you, but…'

'But what?' interrupted Rachel abruptly. 'Don't give me bullshit about commitment, Jack Hunter. Don't you even dare, I'm not that stupid!' she nearly choked. 'What in the world do you take me for?' she yelled.

Jack held out his hands pleadingly. 'I do love you, I do, but I don't know about anything long-term ok? It's just that I don't know if I am totally ready and I don't want to mess up what we have…'

'What we have?' Rachel laughed in cold disbelief. 'Are you kidding me, Jack? What we have is nothing, absolutely nothing!'

'Hang on' interrupted Jack angrily. 'How can you say it's nothing? I know that I may have kissed you first but you responded, Rachel! And you didn't seem like you regretted it one bit!'

'Tell me that you aren't out of your mind, Jack' replied Rachel with an air of deadly calm. 'You kiss me out of the blue, passionately may I add, say that you've missed me, tell me you love me, I tell you that I love you too, we've been talking for what seems like forever and then you have the nerve to stand there and tell me that you aren't ready for long term commitment?'

The silence enclosing the yard was deafening.

Rachel continued, but the tears stinging her eyes and the wobble in her voice was clear. 'What do you want me to do, Jack? If you can't even try to offer a commitment to this relationship, then what are we? I don't know about you, but I can't just sit around like a fool, waiting for you to be ready!' She finished amidst a sob and pressed a hand to her forehead.

Shawn closed his eyes as her last words rang through his mind. A picture flashed behind his eyes of Angela's tear-stained face looking back at him with a heartbroken expression etched on it, uttering the same tearful words to him. Reaching out, he blindly groped for her and pulled her tightly to him, burying his face in her hair. He looked at her after a minute to see her fighting to hold back her own tears.

Jack reached out for her, fear and anxiety writ large on his face. 'Rachel' he pleaded.

She stared back at him, her expression a mixture of anger, fear and love. 'I'm…I'm sorry, Jack. Its over.'

'What?' exclaimed Jack incredulously. 'Rachel, you can't mean that!'

She nodded, hugging her arms to herself as if in protection. 'I do, as much I hate it. We can't keep dancing around this issue anymore, Jack. You aren't ready and I need to know that you care enough to want to make some kind of promise.' She choked down another sob and nearly broke down as she brought a hand to her mouth and fled the backyard, pushing past a stunned Jack, who blankly gaped at where she had stood.

Shawn and Angela were still, trying to process what had just taken place, when Jack slumped against the fence. He rubbed a hand wearily over his face. 'Oh God, she's gone' he whispered in disbelief. He brought his hands to his face and the couple could see his shoulders shaking.

Angela gently steered him over to the settee kept in the backyard and Shawn followed worriedly. They hadn't ever really seen Jack cry all that much, although he had gotten teary-eyed at their wedding and when he'd been asked to stand up with Cory as Shawn's best man. Now however, he was trembling violently and his knees were buckling. He stared straight ahead as Angela attempted to coax him out of his stupor.

'It'll be ok, Jack' she reassured, trying to convince herself of the same as well. Deep down, she sympathized with Rachel and knew what the taller girl was going through all too well. However, it was clear that Jack was obviously torn-up at having her out of his life, and although Angela fully intended to go after Rachel and get the whole story, she couldn't just leave Jack here.

'No it won't' responded Jack brokenly. 'She hates me, Angela. She's been angry at me before, yes, but I've never seen her give me such a look before – it was so full of anger and hate…'

Shawn thumped him on the back encouragingly. 'She doesn't hate you, Jack. Come on…look, just go and talk to her alright? And then…'

'And then, what?' interjected Jack harshly. 'What is there to talk about? I'm the one at fault here, Shawn!'

His younger brother protested. 'Come on Jack, don't give up, ok?'

Jack sighed and turned to Angela. 'How long were you mad at this idiot here when he broke up with you in college at Christmas?'

Angela gave a bittersweet smile and smoothed back a curl behind her brother-in-law's ear. 'Quite mad. I felt that if I didn't see him again for a long time, I'd be perfectly fine.'

Shawn looked at her, aghast and dismayed. 'What?!? Is…is that how you really felt?'

Angela shrugged. 'Well, you'd broken up with me for the third time, Shawn. I was nearing the end of my patience with you. While I would have been willing to work through all of our fears and any issues together, what pissed me off was you deciding to take the easy way out of every possible dilemma by simply avoiding it!' Her voice rose to a steely crescendo.

Shawn's response was chastened and contrite. 'But I did work hard at getting you back and at winning your trust again.'

Angela smiled. 'That you did, honey.' Turning to Jack, she suggested, 'And that's exactly what you're going to have to do as well. Rachel is quite torn up about something you said or did…if you love her all that much, then you have to prove that you're willing to work hard at keeping her in your life.'

Shawn stood up and began to pace. Abruptly, he turned to his brother. 'What exactly happened between the two of you? I mean, it seems like you both have been together on and off, what's going on?'

Jack leaned back into the settee and closed his eyes. 'Well, when Rachel and I went to the Peace Corps together, I guess we began to know each other in a whole new different way. Its one thing to be in a relationship when you're in college and about to graduate, but getting out there in the real world and having that relationship is a totally different ball game. So, as I said, we began to know each other as real adults – what we wanted from the future, how we thought our lives could be, hopes, desires, dreams, ambitions….'

'Sounds wonderful' said Angela quietly. 'So what happened?'

Jack sighed and seemed to curl in upon himself. Angela reached out and drew him in a hug and putting his head on her shoulder, he continued in a forlorn voice, 'There was this guy called Stuart in the Peace Corps who was assigned to the same team as us. He took a shine to Rachel, and although it bothered me, I just assumed that perhaps it was due to the way I'd always cared about her, and felt protective of her, you know?'

'So you swooped in to protect your meat from the competition, is that it?' laughed Shawn softly, squeezing his brother's shoulder.

Jack rolled his eyes but his expression lightened nonetheless. 'Yeah, something like that. I realized that it just wasn't about jealousy - I couldn't really see myself with anyone else other than Rachel. I mean, I found myself comparing every girl I'd ever met with her!'

'But didn't you guys decide to break up originally because you got together because of circumstances?' queried Angela delicately.

Jack got up and ran a hand through his hair. 'I know that we kissed in the aftermath of Dad's death but, well, its just not about that anymore!' He let out a frustrated sigh and looked towards the living room. 'Guess I'm going to go and try to talk to her again. Nothing else I can do anyway…'

'Jack, you're going to have to eventually decide where you want this to go. She's not going to wait forever' said Angela and Jack nodded. He looked at Shawn who was staring at the ground. 'We are a pair of lousy brothers, you know that?'

Shawn grimaced. 'All too well.' Smiling lovingly at Angela, he continued, 'But luckily she forgave me and my life's going ok. You'll be fine, Jack. Just be open with her, ok? I've closed up and it's brought nothing but pain into my life.'

His older brother hugged him in response and then leaned down to kiss Angela's cheek. 'Take care, love' he chuckled weakly and then squaring his shoulders, walked back into the house.

'Wow' Shawn blew out a breath and sat down next to his wife who was now curled up into the settee cushions.

'Wow sounds about right' she murmured, feeling the coiling in her stomach again for the umpteenth time that day and willing it to go away. Shawn knew that something was amiss with her and she didn't want to raise his hopes up just yet but if everything went according to plan, Angela was determined that she would go for a certain medical appointment the first moment they returned home to New York.


	5. Chapter 5

Shawn yawned sleepily and rubbed his eyes as he let his body sink into beloved sheets and burrow under the warm quilt. New York's winter was especially bad this year with a record fall of snow and a contented grin curved his lips as his shivering body finally registered some warmth.

The bathroom door opened and his wife stood in the doorway, fiddling with the buttons on her sweater. Shawn sat up concernedly as she switched off the light and checked on the windows before making her own way to bed. Shedding her slippers, she kept her sweater on and quickly settled herself underneath the covers.

'Oh' she sighed, luxuriating in the warmth. 'This feels great…if this weather continues, I may never want to leave this bed for the rest of the winter.'

Shawn smiled as he pulled her closer and wrapped his arms around her. Reveling in the shared body heat, he stroked her shoulders and asked softly, 'You going to tell me why you've been under the weather, lately?'

Angela was quiet for a minute before she replied. 'I didn't think you'd noticed…things have been rather hectic at work for you.'

Shawn kissed her and then laced their fingers. 'I don't know whether to be fed up or insulted. How could you possibly think that I wouldn't notice when you're feeling down? Out with it, now…'

Angela was quiet again but Shawn registered the stiffening of her body and the quickened breath. 'Shawn' she began tremulously. 'I…I have big news, but I wanted to wait until the weekend, when we could go somewhere nice to eat and then tell you…'

Her husband immediately leaned over to switch on their nightlight and he stared down at her face, eyes wide. 'What is it? Are you ok? What's going on?'

Angela hastened to reassure him, 'Nothing's wrong, honey! I'm fine…I went to the doctor's on Monday and…'

She got no further as Shawn pounced on her words. 'Monday?!' he ejaculated in near hysterics. 'Angela, today is Thursday! Why on earth didn't you tell me sooner? And why did you go to the doctor – you said it was just some stress!'

'Honey! Calm down, ok?' Angela soothed patiently. She sat up as well and faced Shawn. Taking a deep breath, she started, 'I'm doing fine. It's just that a while back, I realized I was…I was late…'

'Late?' interrupted Shawn gently. 'When was it supposed to come?'

'By the tenth. Around the fifteenth, I got a bit worried, because well…you know me, I've always had a regular cycle.'

'True' Shawn nodded sagely but his wife didn't miss the naughty twinkle in his eyes. 'Its like clockwork…the days you hate me are always from the tenth to the fourteenth of any month.'

'Hush!' Angela swatted at him playfully. He caught her hand in his and pressed his lips to her knuckles affectionately. 'So' he continued, this time looking serious again, 'everything's ok, right?'

'Well, we were in Philly at the time for the Matthews' party, remember? So, I resolved that I would meet with a doctor the moment we came back and I did on Monday.'

'Which you didn't feel a need to tell me.' Shawn narrowed his eyes and his voice hardened.

Angela reached up and ran a hand through his hair lovingly. 'I appreciate your concern, but I didn't want to get your hopes up, love.'

'Hopes up for what?'

'Shawn' Angela's eyes were shining and a radiant glow adorned her face as her happiness increased. 'I'm…I'm pregnant.' Her eyes filled with tears and as they coursed down her cheeks, she spoke in a choked whisper, 'We're going to have a baby, sweetheart.'

Shawn simply stared back at her. Her words roared in his ears. He looked down to find his hands tightly gripping hers. A drop of water appeared on his knuckle and another dropped onto her thumb and drifted down her hand. It wasn't until Angela caressed his cheeks and wiped his tears away softly that Shawn realized he'd begun to cry.

'Really?' he whispered. 'A baby? Are you sure about this?'

Angela giggled tearfully. 'Of course! I asked the doctor to triple-check! We're definitely having a baby, honey.'

Shawn brought her hands to his lips and pressed kisses on them through his tears. He let his eyes roam her face for a few seconds and then smoothing a curl tenderly asked, 'How far along are you?'

Angela grasped his hand in hers and brought it to her abdomen. 'Just two weeks' she replied warmly. 'Baby's due in July.'

Shawn felt his lips stretch painfully and realized that a most ridiculous grin seemed to be permanently etched onto his face. A salty taste tingled his lips and Shawn laughed through his tears which had started to flow again. He looked at Angela only to see her laughing as well, but his eyes were immediately riveted to her left hand which was gently stroking her abdomen, almost reverently. She looked dazed and had a faraway look in her eyes.

'Angela?' he questioned softly, not wanting to startle her. 'Are you ok, love?'

She sighed dreamily and brought her other hand to rest as well on her non-existent bump. 'It's just so amazing…I can't believe it. There's a new person in here, Shawn.' She looked up at him and smiled lovingly. 'It's a little bit of you, and a little bit of me.'

Shawn moved forward and kissed her deeply. He wrapped his arms around her and as they rested their foreheads against each other's, his palm moved to splay itself against her stomach. 'It's what I've always wanted…a family to call my own and to belong to. And one which belongs to me.'

He looked back up to see Angela grinning tearfully. 'I'm not going to let anything bad happen to my family, Angela. I promised that I would take care of you on our wedding day.' He moved down so that his head was near her stomach and then whispered, 'And today, I promise you that I am always going to take care of you, little one. You and your mother are the most important things in my life.'

He pressed a sweet kiss through her sweater. Angela hugged him tightly and giggled as Shawn squeezed her in return and linked his hands around her waist. She rested her head against his chest and smiled as she realized how fast his heart was beating.

'I love you, Angela' came his whisper, murmured fervently against her hair.

'I know. I love you, too' she replied, placing a hand against his heart.


End file.
